Door-controlling means.



H. G. VOIGHT.

DOOR CONTROLLING MEANS.

APPLICATION FILED NOV. 15, 1912.

1 69,076. Patented July 29, 1913.

2 sinnmssnnm 1.

.UMBIA PLANOGRAPH CO.,WASHINGTON n c H. G. VOIGHT.

DOOR CONTROLLING MEANS.

AVPPLIOATION FILED NOV. 15, 1912. I

Patented July 29, 1913.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

HENRY G. VOIG-HT, OF NEW BRITAIN, CONNECTICUT.

DOOR-CONTROLLING IVIEANS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 29, 1913.

Application filed November 15, 1912. Serial No. 731,494.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it lmown that I, HENRY G. VoIcHT, a citizen of the United States,residing at New Britain, county of Hartford, State of Connecticut, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Door-Controlling Means,of which the following is a full, clear, and exact descriptio Thisinvention relates to controlling means for sliding doors of the type inwhich a movable arm is carried by the door and is suitably connected, asby another arm, to a relatively stationary abutment, so that said armmoves with the opening and closing of the door.

The object of the present invention is to provide means whereby the doormay be locked open, this means in the present instance comprising alocking member adapted to engage and hold the movable arm against doorclosing movement. These and further advantages are described in detailin the specification following, taken in con-- nection with theaccompanying drawings forming part thereof and illustrating a preferableembodiment of the invention.

In these drawings, Figure l is a view in elevation of a sliding door andits casing to which a door controlling means of the type described andequipped with the locking device of the. present invention, is applied.Fig. 2 is a fragmentary view in elevation of the door controlling partsdetached and in door closed position, the locking device being shown asin inoperative position. Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevation of the doorcontrolling lever arms showing the locking device in operative positionthereon. Fig. 4 is an edge elevation, partially broken off, of the partsshown in Fig. 3. Figs. 5 and 6 are top plan and front elevationsrespectively of the forward end of the locking bar.

One instance of the desirability of locking a door open is found in thecase of the sliding door of an elevator well, whose car is used at timesfor the purpose of carrying freight and other large objects. In suchcases the casing of the sliding door which is usually stationaryrelative thereto, and which with the sliding door, occupiessubstantially the entire width of the elevator well opening, is hingedso that the door and its casing may be swung outwardly as a whole topermit large objects to be loaded upon and be taken from the elevatorcar. With my locking device the sliding door minimum may be opened andlocked opened, and the casing then swung outwardly, occupying a space.

Referring to the drawings by numerals, 1 Indicates a sliding door and 2a relatively stationary casing which may be of the hinged type referredto.

3 designates a lever arm pivotally mounted at one end to the forwardedge of the door 1 and pivotally connected at its other end to a secondlever arm 4 whose free end is in turn pivotally carried by a bracket 5secured to the stile of the door casing 2, for example, forming anabutment stationary relative to the door. The lever arm 4 adjacent itsbracket carried end, is provided with a transverse extension 6 on whichis journaled the piston rod 7 of a power closer cylinder 8 which in turnis pivoted at its lower end to the bracket'rod The power in the cylinder8 acting against its piston and through its piston rod 7 and thetransverse extension 6, normally tends to pull the lever arm 4downwardly and to move the levers 3 and 4 in a direction to move thedoor 1 to closed position. On the forward edge of thedoor, I provide anysuitable form of manually operable controlling means for moving thelever arms 3 and 4 in a direction to move the door to open position,this being possibleof accomplishment against the power of the closercylinder 8 because of the leverage secured through these levers andtransverse extension 6. I am showing for the purposes of illustration anoperating handle 9 pivotally mounted on the forward edge of the door andprovided with a circular casing 13 fitting over the forward pivoted 'endof the lever arm 3 and cooperating with said end to move said lever armsto open the door and to lock said arms against movement when the door isclosed. The specific form of this device forms no part of the presentinvention, but is described and claimed in my prior Patent No.1,028,833, and I am merely showing this construction to illustrate acontrolling handle of this general type.

When the door is closed the lever arms will be in substantially theposition shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings. When the door is openedthe portions of these lever arms adjacent their pivotally interconnectedends, will move relative to and approach each other as suggested in Fig.3 of the drawings. At a suitable point adjacent the pivotallyinterconnected end of the lever arm 3 I provide an abutment stud 11. Ata point adjacent the pivoted end of the lever arm 4, as at 12, isloosely and pivotally mounted a locking bar 13. Secured to the lever arm4 adjacent this point is a spring keeper 14 having at its end a tongue15, this keeper normally resting over the face of the locking bar 13 andholding it loosely in pivoted engagement with the lever arm 4. At itsfree end the bar 13 is provided with a finger piece 16 and with aplurality of notches 17 in its upper edge, these notches being shaped toengage the abutment stud 11 carried by the lever arm 3. Intermediate itsends, the bar 13 is provided with an aperture 18, position-ed to fitover a stud 19 carried by lever arm 4 so that the locking bar may beseated on the lever arm and over said stud 19 and be held thereon byreason of the engagement of the spring keeper tongue 15 with the outerface of the locking bar. This is a position that the bar will occupywhen not in use. To lock the door open it is employed as follows:Assuming that the operating handle 9 has been moved to operate the leverarms 3 and 4 and open the door, say to its full extent, this will bringthe abutment stud 11 on lever arm 3 in a position to be engaged by oneof the notches 17 of the locking bar. The force of the power cylinder 8will tend to move the adjacent pivotally interconnected ends of thelevers 3 and 4 apart, so as to move them to close the door, but this isabsolutely prevented because of the engagement of the pivoted end of thelocking bar 13 with the lever arm 4 and of the free end of said lockingbar with the abutment stud 11 of lever arm 3, thereby preventingrelative movement between these arms to move the door to closedposition. I have only shown the locking bar 13 as provided with threenotches, but desire it understood that this is only illustrative andthat the bar may be provided with notches of varying number which may bespaced apart as desired, and furthermore that the bar 13 and theabutment stud 11 may be so positioned and proportioned, that, incombination with the notches, the points at which the levers may belocked against movement be at the various degrees of opening of thedoor. In addition, the provision of a plurality of recesses 17 permitsthe locking bar to adapt itself to variations in the opening movement ofthe door which may occur through wear of the parts or throughmisjudgment in assembling the same.

hile I have described and illustrated herein a specific embodiment of myinvention I desire it understood that various structural changes arepossible within the spirit of the invention and the scope of theappended claims.

WVhat I claim is: v 1. In a device of the character described, incombination, a sliding door, a relatively stationary abutment, operativeconnections between said door and abutment moving with the openlng andcloslng of the door and normally tending to move said door toward closedposition, means operative to a move said connections and said door toopen position, and manually controlled means associated with said doorand said operative connections and operative to lock said connectionsagainst door closing movement.

2. In a device of the character described, in combination, a slidingdoor, a relatively stationary abutment, an arm carried by said dooroperatively connected with said abutment and moving with the opening andclosing of the door, means normally tending to move said door towardclosed position, means for moving sald arm to move said door to openposltion, and manually controlled means for locking said movable armagainst door-closing movement. 7

In a device of the character described, in combination, a sliding door,a relatively stationary abutment, an arm carried by said dooroperatively connected with said abutment and moving with the opening andclosing of the door, manually controlled means for moving said arm tomove said door to open position, closing mechanism operatively connectedto said arm to move the same in a direction to move said door to closedposition, and means for locking said door opened against the action ofsaid closing mechanism.

4. In a device of the character described, in combination, a slidingdoor, a relatively stationary abutment, an arm carried by said dooroperatively connected with said abutment and moving with the opening andclosing of the door, manually controlled means for moving said arm tomove said door to open position, closing mechanism operatively connectedto said arm to move the same in a direction to move said door to closedposition, and manually controlled means for locking said arm againstdoor closing movement through said closing mechanism.

5. In a device of the character described, in combination, a slidingdoor, a relatively stationary abutment, an arm carried by said dooroperatively connected with said abutment and moving with the opening andclosing of the door, means for moving said arm' ing of the door, meansfor moving said arm to move said door to open position, and manuallycontrolled means for locking said arm against movement at a plurality ofdoor opened positions.

7 In a device of the character described, in combination, a slidingdoor, a relatively stationary abutment, a lever pivotally connected tothe door, a second lever pivotally connected to said first lever andoperatively connected with said abutment, said levers moving with theopening and closing of the door, operating means carried by the door formoving said levers in a direction to move said door to open position,and locking means carried by one of said levers and adapted to cooperatewith the other lever to lock said levers against door-closing movement.

8. In a device of the character described, in combination, a slidingdoor, a relatively stationary abutment, a lever pivotally connected tothe door a second lever pivotally connected to said 'rst lever andoperatively connected with said abutment, said levers moving with theopening and closing of the door, operating means carried by the door formoving said levers in a direction to move said door to open position,and locking means carried by one of said levers and adapted to cooperatewith the other lever to lock said levers against door-closing movement,in a plurality of door opened positions.

9. In a device of the character described, in combination, a slidingdoor, a relatively stationary abutment, a lever pivotally connected tothe door, a second lever pivotally connected to the first lever andinoperative connection with said abutment said levers moving with theopening and closing of the door, manually controlled operating meanscarried by the door and adapted to move said levers in a direction tomove said door to opened position, closing mechanism in operativeconnection with said levers and normally tending to move the same in adirection to move said door to closed position, and a locking membercarried by one of said levers adapted to be engaged with the other ofsaid levers to lock said levers against door-closing movement.

HENRY G. VOIGHT. Witnesses:

GWENDOLINE A. JAoKsoN, H. J. BROWNE.

Copies of: this patent may be obtained for five cents each, byaddressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G.

